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Acknowledgments Ms. Beth LaVelle Rev. Brad Braley & First Presbyterian Church Rabbi Stanley Rosenbaum & The Sons of Jacob Synagogue The Grout Museum Mrs. Robin Venter Mr. Bob Neymeyer Ms. Erin Maiden Mr. Don Morehead Mr. Phil Mass Frank Lundak Doug Herbon West Music Co.
Welcome to Our Fourth Concert Season !
Special Acknowledgments to: The Cedar Valley Chamber Music Festival Wishes to Thank the Following Organizations for their Support of this festival The Iowa Arts Council Community Foundation of Northeast Iowa The Guernsey Foundation
Cedar Falls Community Theatre DEATH BY CHOCOLATE
2009-2010 season October, 2009
A delightfully sarcastic and cynical murder mystery comedy. The clues point to a sinister box of chocolates and the suspects include all the outlandish characters working for the resort
NUNCRACKERS
December, 2009
Dan Goggin's Nuncrackers: The Nunsense Christmas Musical is filled with “Nunsense� humor, favorite carols and humorous new songs. Insures your holiday season is merry and bright!
MOON OVER BUFFALO
February, 2010
In the madcap comedy tradition of Lend me a Tenor by Ken Ludwig. Everything that could go wrong does go wrong with hilarious uncertainty about which play the actors are actually performing.
www.osterregent.org
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First Presbyterian Church, 902 Main St., Cedar Falls
Program "Gulliver Suite" for Two Violins from Der Getreue Musik-Meister (1728)
I. II. III. IV. V.
Intrada Lilliputsche Chaconne | Chaconne of the Lilliputans Brobdingnagische Gigue | Gigue of the Brobdingnaginas Reverie der Laputier, nebst ihren Aufweckern | Daydreams of the Laputians and their attendant flappers Loure der gesitten Houyhnhnms & Furie der unartigen Yahoos | Loure of the well mannered Houyhnhms & Wild dance of the untamed Yahoos. Tigran Vardanyan Emily Vardanyan
Violin Violin
William Bolcom (b. 1938)
Fairy Tales for Viola, Cello, and Double Bass ( 1988 )
I. II. III. IV. V.
ANDANTE Jean Hall Roger Hanson Jason and Jenette Weinberger Alan Schmitz Samuel Gladden John E. Bruha Elner Edsill Judith Harrington Martha Holvik Richard and Lisa Hurban Barbara Kazenelson Rodney and Sara Lair Nancy K. Lemons David and Mary McCalley Bryan and Mary Robin Molinaro-Blonigan Guy Rosen Thomas Schilke Steve Tripolino Nancy K. Lemons Lathon and Linda Jernigan
ADAGIO
Silly March The Fisherman and His Wife The Frog Prince Jorinda ad Joringe! The Hare and the Hedgehog - Silly March II Julia Bullard Nathan Cook Hunter Capoccioni
Viola Cello Double Bass
Five Pieces from the ballet “Cinderella” (arr. Fichtenholz) (1944) I. II. III. IV. V.
Georg Philip Telemann (1681-1767)
Patrons of the Arts
Serge Prokofiev (1891- 1953)
Waltz Gavotte Passepied Winter Fairy Mazurka Tigran Vardanyan Lee Schmitz
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Roger Hanson Julie and Robert Fischer George and Sandy Glenn Martin Holst John Holstad C. Patrick Lyman C. Hugh Pettersen Dorothy Plager Dan and Sherry Robertson F Kevin and Janet G. Sanders Robert and Ann Singer Jan VanMetre Carolyn Hildebrandt Bill and Cindy Kline Wanda Reece Donald Wendt Robert and Nancy Friedman Robert and Helen Hill
Violin Piano
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Patrons of the Arts PRESTISSIMO $1,500 and up PRESTO $1000-$1,499
Fairy Tales op. 132 for Clarinet, Viola, and Piano ( c. 1853)
Robert Schumann (1810- 1856)
I. Lebhaft, Nicht Zu Schnell | Lively, Not too fast II. Lebhaft Und Sher Markirt | Lively and very marked II. Ruhiges Tempo, Mit Zartem Ausdruck | Peaceful tempo, with tender expression IV. Lebhaft, Sher Markirt | Lively, very marked
VIVACE $500-$499 ALLEGRO $250-$499 MODERATO $100-$249
Jennifer Stevenson Clarinet Julia Bullard Viola Lee Schmitz Piano
ANDANTE $50-$99 ADAGIO $20-$49
“Ma Mére L’Oye” (Mother Goose Suite) for Piano Quintet (arr. Kato) (1911-12)
PRESTISSIMO Iowa Arts Council Community Foundation Max and Helen Guernsey Foundation
VIVACE Kent and Barb Opheim Howard Vallance Jones, Jr. Richard C Hinton
ALLEGRO Wesley and Barbara Heitzman Steven and Janice Moore Thomas and Charolette Strub Jo Ruth Capoccioni
MODERATO Walter and Terri Brandt Augusta Schurrer Jacqueline Halbloom Michael and Linda Rickert Angelita Floyd Virginia Phelps Dale and Diane Phelps Augusta Schurrer Robert D. and Alice M. Talbott Michael and Laura Walter Dr. John and Dorothy Glascock
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Maurice Ravel (1875- 1937)
I. Pavane de la Belle au bois dormant | Pavanne of the Sleeping Beauty in the Forest II. Petit Poucet | Tom Thumb III. Laideronnette, Impératrice des Pagodes | Homely Little Girl, Empress of the Chinese dolls IV. Les entretiens de la Belle et la Bête | Conversations of the Beauty and the Beast V. Le jardin féerique | The Fairy Garden Emily Vardanyan Julia Bullard Nathan Cook Hunter Capoccioni Lee Schmitz
Violin Viola Cello Double Bass Piano
Notes about tonight’s multimedia performance Fairy Tales draw so much from our imagination that I wanted to utilize current technology to bring together the imaginary worlds of the composer’s of tonight’s works along with different illustrations of authors, painters, and photographers into a unified artistic concept. Some of these works are about literary characters, such as Cinderella or Tom Thumb. Other’s, like Schumann’s work, are much more abstract in their composition. Tonight’s program notes are not typical, in that they are not going to outline the facts about each composer and the historical contexts of each work. Instead I wanted to talk a little about the literary works themselves and how the composer’s referenced the characters and events that make up their composition. Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver's Travels recounts the story of Lemuel Gulliver, a practical-minded Englishman trained as a surgeon who takes to the seas when his business fails. On his voyage, Gulliver encounter’s a myriad of unusual creatures, each one a satirical reference to 18th century European bureaucracy or the corruptibility of mankind. The work was translated into numerous languages during Telemann’s lifetime. Tackling this intellectual and witty work, Telemann uses not only aural elements to depict Swift’s world, but visual as well. In what musicologists refer to as “Eye Music” Telemann uses the graphical aspects of musical notation, the meter, duration, and layout of the music, to emphasize the story’s events and characters. Here is a list and description of these mythical creatures: The Lilliputians- tiny, six-inch tall people who are filled with self-importance and possess all the petty vices and follies of humankind: greed, hypocrisy, selfishness, and moral corruption.
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The Brobdingnagians: The Brobdingnagians are a giant race of people. As well as being physically bigger than Gulliver, they are also morally superior. Like Gulliver's countrymen, they are subject to all the temptations of humankind, but they choose morality and common sense rather than vice and folly. The Laputans: The Laputans are a people who are so engaged in abstract thought, particularly about mathematics and music, that they pay no attention to practical matters. They are unable to make clothes that fit or houses that stand. The Houyhnhnms: The Houyhnhnms are a superior race of rational horses, who run their society according to reason and virtue. The Yahoos: The Yahoos are the bestial and repugnant race of human-like creatures that inhabit the land of the Houyhnhnms. They are held in subjection by the Houyhnhnms and act as their servants, being used for carriage and draught. The next work on the program is based on several different stories complied by the Grimm brothers. Many Grimm tales are well know, such as the The Frog Prince, but others, like Jorinda and Joringel, are somewhat obscure to American audiences. The Silly March that encases the work can be thought of as a prelude and postlude to the work. Here is a summary of each tale: THE FISHERMAN AND HIS WIFE Once upon a time there was a Fisherman and his wife, and they lived in a hut by the sea. Every day the fisherman went out to the sea to fish. One day he caught a flounder, who said "please let me live, let me go back to the sea". The fisherman, a good man that he was, answered "I have never seen a talking fish, so don't worry, I won't kill you" and let the flounder go. He went home to his wife empty-handed and told her about the talking fish. The wife said "you silly man, why did you not ask him for a nice cottage? Go back and ask for it!" The fisherman went to the sea and called for the flounder, who said "go home, your wife already has what she asked for". The fisherman went home and found his wife in a beautiful cottage, with shiny pots and pans and flowers at the window. --- and so the story continues, and the wife gets greedier and greedier. First she asks for the cottage, then she wants be the king, the pope and the emperor. Finally, she says "I want to control the sun and the moon, I want to be god!" And so, the fisherman asks the flounder for his wife to be god, and the flounder says "Go home then; she is sitting again in the hut." THE FROG PRINCE Once upon a time there was a beautiful young princess who lived in the beautiful kingdom with her father, the king. Her favorite toy was a golden ball and she played with it every day in the garden of her father's castle. One day she dropped it to a well and started crying, because nobody was there to help her. All of a sudden she heard a voice saying "what is the matter, sweet princess?" The little princess looked around, but the only thing nearby was an ugly frog. "Was it you that spoke?" asked the princess --- and yes, it was the very same, ugly frog that had spoken to her. Of course, the frog found the ball, but not until he made the little princess promise that he will become her new best friend. And of course, when he returned the ball to the princess, she ran away forgetting all about the promise. Later, however, when the king and his daughter were having dinner, the frog appeared in the castle demanding his rightful place at the table. The princess tried to ignore the frog, but the wise king demanded she honor her promise and let the frog eat from her plate, sleep in her bed, play with her toys. Eventually she got very frustrated and threw the frog into the wall. By doing this, she broke a spell and the frog turned into a young handsome prince. The moral of the story? Appearances are deceiving, indeed!
Coordinator and Librarian for the WCFSO. She also served as Associate Principal viola and section member with the Cedar Rapids Symphony for fifteen years. Ms. Sihler received her M.M. from SUNY at Stony Brook and her B.M. from Oberlin Conservatory.
Jennifer Stevensen, Clarinet - a native of Creston, IA, Dr. Stevensen received her B.M. from DePaul University where she studied with Larry Combs, principle clarinetist of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and her M.M. from Rice University, Houston, TX, where she studied with Dr. Michael Webster. Most recently she studied with Yehuda Gilad at the University of Southern California, where she completed her Doctoral degree. She is a member of the Nucleus Ensemble, the Orion winds, and the Tonoi Ensemble (Los Angeles) as well as playing with the American Symphony (L.A.), Orchestra X, Woodlands, Symphony, and the Classical Symphony Orchestra (Chicago). Jennifer is also a highly recognized composer. Her works have premiered at the Chicago Civic Center as part of the New Artists in Chicago festival and at the International Clarinet Association’s 1999 Convention in Ostend, Belgium. Jennifer’s passion for music education and outreach, has led to her current position as a composer/performer for L.A. Music Works’ “Musical Adventure” series. In addition to children’s outreach, Jennifer designs innovative programming as part of the University of Southern California’s Residential Education division, and teachers a course in paraprofessional counseling at USC. Jennifer is currently on faculty at the Bellflower Institute of Arts, Music and Science and the American Festival for the Arts (Houston).
Emily Vardanyan, Violin - Emily received her B.M. degree in Violin Performance from the Eastman School of Music 2006, where she studied with Mikhail Kopelman, former first violinist of the Borodin and Tokyo String Quartets and currently the Kopelman String Quartet. She continued her post-graduation studies with Zvi Zeitlin. She is a member of several chamber music ensembles, including Quartsemble and the Marini String Ensemble, and participates in the CVCMF every summer. She’s a member of the Chamber Music Faculty at the Hochstein School of Music and Dance since 2008. An avid orchestral musician, she held the position of Concertmaster with both the Eastman School Symphony Orchestra and the Eastman Philharmonia. She is currently the Assistant Concertmaster of the Orchestra of the Southern Finger Lakes. She performs frequently with the Syracuse Symphony Orchestra, Cayuga Chamber Orchestra, and Rochester Chamber Orchestra. She and her husband Tigran are the Duo Vardanyan.
Tigran Vardanyan, Violin - was born in Yerevan, Armenia and first studied with his father then attended the Sayat Nova School of Music and Tchaikovsky Specialized Music School, studying with Professors Levon Zorian and Villy Mokazian. In 1994 Tigran immigrated to the USA upon his acceptance of a full scholarship to the Crossroads School for Arts and Sciences in Santa Monica, CA, to study with Ukrainian violinist Abram Shtern . In 1996 he studied at Eastman School of Music with Professor Zvi Zeitlin, and in 1999 he joined Professor Oleh Krysa’s Studio. Tigran is a winner of many competitions and awards, such as First Prize in the 1991 and 1993 Armenian National Competitions, the Gold Medal in the 1992 Amadeus competition for Young Artists, the “Encourage” Award from the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, the 1996 and 1997 Starling Foundation Awards at the Eastman School of Music, the Performer’s Certificate from the Eastman School of Music, and many, many more. Tigran has been a member of the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra since 1998, and in 2007 joined the faculty at the David Hochstein Memorial Music School. He continues to perform as a soloist and chamber musician at various music festivals and concert venues in the Middle East, Europe, Central America, and North America. Tigran became a U.S. citizen in 2009 and lives in Rochester, N.Y. with his wife Emily.
JORINDA AND JORINGEL Once upon a time there were two young people, Jorinda and Joringel, who liked each other very much. They also liked taking long walks in the woods. One beautiful day they went farther than ever before and got lost. All of a sudden they saw a wall of an ancient castle. Without knowing, they entered the magical
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Houston (TX) where he studied with Norman Fischer. Dr. Cook’s other teachers have included Terry King, Evan Jones, Richard Eckert, Andre Emelianoff, and Einar Holm. Dr. Cook is a founding member of both the HOT EARTH ENSEMBLE and the EXORIOR DUO with flutist Michelle Cheramy. He has served as the principal cellist of the Houston Chamber Orchestra and has been soloist with that orchestra, the Colgate University Orchestra, and the Round Top Festival Orchestra. Dr. Cook has performed with chamber groups in tours of Mexico, Brazil, and Chile.
Robin Guy, Pianist - Dr. Guy is Professor of Piano/Collaborative Piano and Chair of the Keyboard Division at the University of Northern Iowa, where she has served since 1990. She previously served on the piano faculties of the University of Arizona, Grand Canyon University, and Brewton-Parker College. She regularly spends her summers performing and teaching piano at the world-renowned Interlochen Arts Camp in Michigan. Dr. Guy earned the DMA in piano performance from the University of Arizona, the MM from Baylor University and the BME from Baldwin-Wallace College Conservatory.
John Hines, Voice- Born in New Washington, OH, Hines received his undergraduate degree in music education from Heidelberg College and his graduate degrees in vocal performance from Kent State University, and The Shenandoah University Conservatory of Music. In addition to his graduate studies, Hines also studied at The American Institute of Music Studies in Graz, Austria and at the acclaimed Indiana University Jacob School of Music in Bloomington, IN. In 2006, Hines joined the music faculty at UNI. Previous teaching appointments include Cornerstone University, Taylor University, Ball State University, and Pittsburg State University. Hines has received critical acclaim for his “stunning basso profundo low notes...” which in the operatic world has made him a logical suitor for many opera basso gods and villains i.e.Wotan, Sarastro, Osmin, Boris Godunov, Scarpia, and Mephistopheles - all which he has sung. As a concert soloists, Hines has performed with symphonies from Russia to California. With an oratory repertory of over 50 major works, he is a frequent soloist in Handel’s “Messiah”, Haydn’s “Creation”, and the “Requiem Masses” of Mozart, Faure, and Verdi.
Jean McDonald - Voice -Ms. McDonald is an associate professor and chair of the voice division at the University of Northern Iowa. She is an active to creative life at UNI, appearing as a featured soloist in Faculty Showcase and Spotlight Series events, performing a broad variety of literature with an emphasis on chamber works. She holds degrees from the University of Iowa and Simpson College and holds several competitive honors, including awards from the National Association of teachers of Singing Artist Auditions and the District Metropolitan Opera Auditions. In March 2001, Ms. McDonald performed the West Coast premier of Jeremy Beck’s Black Water, a work she has recorded with Robin Guy, recently released on Innova Records. In 2006, Ms. McDonald showcased the work of faculty colleague Jonathan Schwabe in a premiere of Anyone Lived in a Pretty How Town for mezzo soprano and orchestra.
Lee Schmitz, Pianist -Lee began his study of music in Anchorage, AK at the age of five and later studied piano with Joan Smalley and John Holstad. In high school he won the IMTA (Iowa Music Teachers Association) piano competition two years in a row, and was granted a full tuition scholarship to the University of Northern Iowa School of Music. He also won third prize in the Terrace Hill Piano Competition in 2000. At UNI he studied with Robin Guy, Dr. Jeongwan Ham, Sean Botkin, and Genadi Zagor. In 2001-2002, he lived in Angers, France to learn French and study with Vovka Ashkenazy, son of the famous Vladimir Ashkenzay. Lee has been a rehearsal accompanist/performer for various productions at UNI i.e. The Magic Flute, The Threepenny Opera, Sweeney Todd, and he also has extensive experience as a choral accompanist. Lee received his Masters Degree of Music in Collaborative Piano at the Cleveland Institute of Music where he studied with Anita Pontremoli and Elizabeth DeMio. Lee is on staff at the Cleveland Institute of Music as staff accompanist plus he works at the Cleveland Music School Settlement.
circle that surrounded the castle and became under a spell of a wicked witch, who by the day was an owl and by the night an ugly, old woman. Joringel realized he was stuck to his place, unable to move or talk and Jorinda could only make a strange kind of sound: she had turned into a dove! The old witch appeared and put Jorinda into a wicker basket, and went away. When the morning came, Joringel was freed from the spell and able to move again. He was heartbroken by the idea that he would never see his beloved Jorinda again. One night he dreamed of a bright red flower that had a pearl for a heart. When he woke, he knew that the flower would save his love. He looked for it for many days and nights, and finally found it. He went back to the witch's castle and discovered seven thousand birds in wicker baskets. By touching the witch with the bright red flower he took all of her magical powers away and by touching the dove, he got back his Jorinda. In the end, he freed all the seven thousand maidens and they all lived happily ever after. THE HARE AND THE HEDGEHOG Once upon a time there was a hedgehog and his wife, who lived by a turnip patch. One beautiful Sunday morning the hedgehog took a stroll to the patch and ran into the hare. The hare made fun of the hedgehog's crooked little legs, and much hurt by it, the hedgehog challenged him to a race the same afternoon. He realized, of course, that unless he could use his brain instead of his legs, he had no way of winning the race. So he went home and told his wife to come with him and sit at the lower end of the furrow. If she would see the hare coming, she should poke her head up and say "here I am already!" The race began, and the hare started running like a whirlwind. But before he reached the end of the furrow, he saw that the hedgehog was already there, saying "here I am already!" He could not believe his eyes, and so he immediately challenged the hedgehog to a rematch. The result was the same! When he approached the other end of the furrow, the hedgehog was already there, not even out of breath. This went on all night. On the seventy-fourth time, when the rabbit just could not run anymore, he had to declare the hedgehog a winner. The happy hedgehog went home with his wife, and since then, no rabbit has dared to pass a remark about the hedgehog's legs. In all of fairy tale literature Cinderella is one story that is universally known and loved. Interestingly, some version of this tale can be found in many cultures on different continents dating back to at least the 9th Century A.D. There are many variations of her name, but most have some reference to “cinder” or “ash” as a reference to the low class of servitude and the daily cleaning of the common room fireplace. Each movement of Prokofiev’s work is centered around popular dances of the late 19th and early 20th centuries as the work was composed as a ballet. The gracefulness of Cinderella is given a very Russian flavor by Prokofiev. Full of restlessness, darkness, and mystery, this work is wonderful example of how each culture adopts tales into their own cultural aesthetic. By contrast, Schumann’s Marchenerzahlugen (Fairy Tales) isn’t based on any real tale at all. Here the term refers more to the idea of pure “fantasy”. During the 19th Century, composer’s such as Schumann, Liszt, and their contemporaries often went away from formal titles, such as sonata, and wrote shorter vignettes with abstract illusionary titles. Since there is no program I thought it would be interesting to display photographs that were given “Fairy Tale” as their title in some manner. What you will see on the screen are all photos taken from flickr.com. These are all photos by people from around the world who were so moved by a scene or architecture that it seemed to them to be a fairy tale or fairy tale inspired location. The last work, La mere l’Oye, by Maurice Ravel was originally written for two children as a work for piano four hands. Ravel later orchestrated the work and turned it into a ballet suite. “Mother Goose” is a historically ambiguous term usually associated with the genre known as nursery rhymes. The French author, Charles Perrault, wrote Contes de ma mère l'Oye in 1695 and it is from these groups of short stories that Ravel takes his characters. Interestingly it is from this collection of works that characters such as Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, and Sleeping Beauty were first introduced to the English speaking world. As an impressionist, Ravel does less to directly conjure the stories of each character and more to display the universal beauty, innocence, and humor of each tale much like an adult who might not remember the exact story but longs for the simplicity of childhood and remembers how each story made them feel.
Kathleen Sihler, Viola -is principal violist with the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Symphony. In addition, she is Education
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The Artists
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Heather Armstrong, Oboe - Assistant Professor of Oboe and Music Theory at Luther College, Decorah, IA. She holds the
The Dreams of Isaac & Jacob! A Historical Narrative of Waterloo Jewish History August 12th, 2009 at 7:00 PM
Sons of Jacob Synagogue, Waterloo
Ute Brandenburg, Viola - has been a teacher with the UNI Suzuki School since 1998. She is a violist with the Waterloo-
Program Les Reves de Jacob (1949)
Darius Milhaud (1892 - 1974)
I. Animé: Jacob’s Pillow II. Mysterieux: The first dream: The angel’s ladder III. Modéré: Prophecy IV. Moderement Animé: Second Dream: Flight with the dark angel and benediction V. Hymne: Israel Heather Armstrong Oboe Emily Vardanyan Violin Ute Brandenburg Viola Nathan Cook Cello Hunter Capoccioni Double Bass The Dreams and Prayers of Isaac the Blind (1994)
Jennifer Stevenson Tigran Vardanyan Emily Vardanyan Julia Bullard Nathan Cook
Clarinet Violin Violin Viola Cello
Cedar Falls Symphony, and frequently performs with the Cedar Rapids Symphony. Ute is a graduate of the Hochschule fuer Musik und Theater in Hanover, Germany. She completed her Suzuki training with William Preucil, Nancy Lokken, and Helen Brunner. She lives in Cedar Falls with her husband and two daughters.
Jeffrey Brich, Tenor - is an instructor of voice at the University of Northern Iowa. Jeffrey holds degrees from the University of Iowa (B.M.) and U.N.I. (M.M.) and has earned several competitive honors. Prior to his employment at U.N.I., Mr. Brich was Lecturer in Voice for nine years at Wartburg College. Professionally, he has performed roughly twenty roles in opera and oratorio, including frequent performances of Handel’s “Messiah”, Mendelssohn’s “Elijah”, and Mozart’s “Requiem”. He has sung with orchestras in Indianapolis, Milwaukee, Peoria, Cedar Rapids, and most recently with the Mendocino Music Festival. Mr. Brich distinguishes himself by singing a broad spectrum of literature, performing with versatility and ease whether with orchestra, in opera, or in recital venues. Osvaldo Golijov (b. 1960)
Prelude: Calmo, sospeso I. Agitato - Con fuoco - Maestoso- Senza misura, oscillante II. Teneramente - Ruvido - Presto III. Calmo, sospeso - Allegro pesante Postlude: Lento, liberamente
Doctor of Musical Arts and Master of Music degrees from the Eastman School of Music, where she was a student of Richard Killmer. She received her Bachelor of Music degree from Houghton College, N.Y., where she studied with Emily Agnew Rachel Smith, and Anna Hendrickson. She has also studied at the Banff Centre for the Arts, the Chautauqua School of Music, and the MasterWorks Festival. Ms. Armstrong is a member of the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Symphony and also performs with the La Crosse Symphony. Prior to moving to Iowa she played principal oboe with the Southern Tier Symphony (NY) and has also performed with the Erie, (PA) and Binghamton (NY) Philharmonic Orchestras.
Julia Bullard, Viola - teaches viola, string pedagogy, and music theory at the University of Northern Iowa. In 2003 she was appointed Director of the UNI Suzuki School. She is an active solo, chamber, and orchestral performer both in the US and abroad. Dr. Bullard received the D.M.A. degree from the University of Georgia where she was the Director of the Pre-College String Program. She received her M.M. (string pedagogy and music history) and B.M. (performance) degrees from Temple University in Philadelphia, PA. Her principal teachers have included Sidney Curtiss, Emanuel Vardi, Joseph dePasquale, Mark Cedel, and Levon Ambartsumian. Dr. Bullard has served on the boards of the Iowa Viola Society and the Iowa String Teachers’ Association, of which she is currently journal editor and President-Elect.
Hunter Capoccioni, Double Bass - a native of Waterloo, Mr. Capoccioni has performed concertos throughout the United States, Europe, and Russia. At age sixteen he won the Lucy P. Weed String Competition in Yankton, South Dakota, and the same year was chosen as a finalist for the American String Teachers Association Competition in Kansas City. Mr. Capoccioni graduated with a B.A. and M.A. in music performance from Rice University, Houston (TX) where he studied with Paul Ellison. Instructors have included Diana Gannet, Gary Karr, and Fred Rees. Mr. Capoccioni was principal bassist with the Norrlands Opera Orchestra in Umea, Sweden, and Norwegian Opera Orchestra in Oslo, Norway. Currently, Mr. Capoccioni is adjunct instructor of double bass at the University of Northern Iowa. He has completed the first year of his doctorate in double bass performance. Mr. Capoccioni is the founder and Artistic Director of the Cedar Valley Chamber Music Festival
Nathan Cook, Cello— Dr. Cook hails from Appleton, WI and holds an undergraduate degree in chemistry from Grinnell College in Iowa as well as a Master of Arts in Teaching degree from Colgate University in New York. Dr. Cook received his Masters and doctoral degrees in music at the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University,
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battle fields where the resemblance between Hell and Earth must have seemed blurred to Ramuz and Stravinsky. The next work on tonight’s program shifts to the Second World War and paints a starkly different picture. Far from the dark depths of Hell , The Four Whitman songs of Kurt Weill derive from the Broadway ballads that have become the composer’s trademarks. Weill turned to Whitman’s Leaves of Grass immediately after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. The music displays Weill’s intense patriotism during a time of crisis and his personal contribution to the emerging war effort. As an immigrant from the Weimar Republic, Weill was the best of those men and women who crossed the Atlantic embracing the American dream of a better life. From the moment he disembarked on U.S. shores he considered himself an American and wrote in a populist style so dissimilar from the elitist Weimar regime of his upbringing. Essentially Weill is now viewed as an artist who became a voice for all new immigrants during the war effort, fighting for the talents they could all contribute to the war effort. The Three Whitman Pieces of Paul Creston use Whitman’s prose in a unique manner. Rather than set a piece with voice, Creston uses Whitman as an unspoken invocation that sets the tone for each movement. Written at the tail end of the Great Depression, this is an early work of a young and promising Creston full of wonderful lyricism and rhythmic vitality that truly compliments the optimistic philosophies of Whitman. The composer Ned Rorem is the only living composer on tonight’s program. An ardent pacifist and Quaker, Rorem has set the works of Whitman on several occasions with tonight’s work being among his most performed. Although Rorem’s notes say that his War Scenes can be applied to any war past and present, the work is dedicated "to those who died in Vietnam, both sides, during the composition; 20-30 June 1969." The five texts are freely extracted from the prose of Whitman's Civil War diary, Specimen Days. Through this quasi-diary Whitman penned his observations from his arrival on the front in 1862, through the war's conclusion in 1865. Whitman's diaries describe in delicate and often tender prose, his exchanges with soldiers and doctors, anecdotes of battle, last words, and a horrifying amalgam of suffering and death. The last work is subtitled a “cantata lamentation” evoking a sacred or spiritual reverence. The text is the poetry of Vichal Lindsay. Born in Springfield, Illinois the poet speaks of Lincoln’s spirit walking the streets of his hometown still searching and waiting for a time where justice and tolerance prevail. “Too many peasants fight, they know not why. Too many homesteads in black terror weep...”. That Lincoln weeps for us and with us, hoping that the work he did was not in vain, is the aesthetic in which Roy Harris sets his music. Roy Harris creates an extremely lush and lyrical piece that intensifies Lindsay’s poem. The violin and cello not only support the vocal line, but at several points are treated equally as melodic voices or echoes of the soprano. The piano is treated more ethereally with vertical, open sonorities invoking the idea of chimes or bells. The Grout Museum will stay open after the concert this evening for you to tour. I hope you take advantage of this opportunity. There are many voices from our past that have so many valuable things to share with us if we choose to listen. “All truths wait in all things. They neither hasten their own delivery nor resist it.” -Walt Whitman
About the Dreams of Jacob and Isaac Program notes by Rabbi Stanley Rosenbaum Jacob: The third of the biblical patriarchs, Jacob was the son of Isaac and Rebecca. His very beginning was already marked by divine vision. After 20 years of childless marriage, his mother struggled with a difficult pregnancy. Seeking an answer for her travail, she was informed by the Lord that she would have twins, each of whom was destined to found a great nation. Esau the firstborn, however, would be subordinate to the younger, Jacob. Thus Jacob was predestined to be the heir to God’s covenant with Abraham and Isaac. Jacob, the quiet, studious “dweller in tents” receives the birthright when his huntsman brother trades it for a meal of lentil stew. Later, when Isaac in his old age intends to give the firstborn’s blessing to Esau, Rebecca overhears and—believing that Jacob is more worthy—devises a plan whereby Jacob receives the blessing. Disguising himself as Esau, Jacob receives the blessing from his blind father. Learning of this, Esau vows to murder his brother once their father is dead. Rebecca learns of this and determines to save Jacob by insisting that he find a wife from within her family in Mesopotamia and not from the native Hittite women. As he is then leaving Israel to cross the Jordan River, Jacob spends the night in a field, using a stone as his pillow. There he dreams of a ladder/stairway stretching from earth to heaven, with angels ascending and descending. This represents divine protection. Jacob then hears the Lord promise him the Land of Israel and descendants “as numerous as the stars in the sky and the grains of sand on the seashore,” the same covenant that God had made with his grandfather and father. Moreover, God would extend protection to Jacob, bring him back safely to the land from which he was now fleeing, and Jacob’s descendants would be a blessing to the whole earth. Jacob awakes from his dream vision, amazed that he had not perceived God’s presence in the place. He vows to dedicate it as a sacred site on his safe return, renames it Beth-El (“the House of God”) and pledges to devote a tithe of all his possessions. Isaac the Blind: Isaac the Blind (“Sagi Nahor”)(c. 1160-1235), also called “HeChasid”/”the Pious,” was a central rabbinic figure in the medieval period of a long tradition of Jewish mystical thought stretching back some 25 centuries. Little is known about his biography, however he is associated with Posquieres in Provence. Although he is known as “the Blind,” his students do not mention that, and there are fragments of his works with long discussions on the mysticism of lights and colors. Furthermore, he is familiar with books and even states, “this I found in an ancient manuscript.” It is possible that he became blind late in life. Isaac was reputed to have great mystical powers. It is said that he had the power to sense whether a person would live or die, and that he had magical power in prayer. Much of his philosophy emphasizes the role of thought, contemplation, and meditation. His philosophical system is based on a variation of the medieval kabbalistic system of the ten Sefirot, the attributes of God, which emanated from Ancient Divine Thought (“Machashavah”). He speaks of three levels within the Divine, ranging from that which is completely unknowable, the “Cause of Thought,” through “Thought”, and down to “Speech,” moving from highest ultimate unity to the lowest level of the diverse world in which we live. Thought is the revelation of the Hidden God. The development of the world that we perceive is essentially a linguistic development, revealed through Thought transformed into words, based on the letters of the Hebrew alphabet. “The apparent letters are nothing but a manifestation of the inner letters by which the (Hebrew) Divine Words came into being, and they are the bases of the world.” There is a constant emanation from the highest Unknowable to the lowest, and all essences are connected through contemplation. Hence, through the study of Torah (Divine Revelation) and contemplative prayer, we can ascend through the chain of emanation experiencing creation itself as an act of contemplation from God within Himself, and finally a return to the Source and origin.
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War Scenes (1969)
bÇvx hÑÉÇ t g|Åx A A A Lincoln, Whitman, and the Iowans in the Civil War August 15th, 2009 7 p.m.
The Grout Museum, Waterloo
I. II. III. IV. V.
Ned Rorem (b. 1923)
A Night Battle Specimen Case An Incident Inauguration Ball The Real War Will Never Get in the Books
Introduction and Video: “Going off to war”
John Hines Voice Robin Guy Piano
Suite from L'Histoire du Soldat (1918)
Igor Stravinsky (1882- 1971)
I. La March du Soldat II. Le Violon du Soldat III. Le Petit Concert IV. Tango, Valse, Ragtime V. La Danse du Diable Jennifer Stevenson Emily Vardanyan Lee Schmitz
Abraham Lincoln Walks at Midnight: A Cantata of Lamentation (1962)
Clarinet Violin Piano
Three Whitman Songs (1942)
Video: “Views at the End of the War”
Roy Harris (1898-1979)
Kurt Weill
Jean McDonald Tigran Vardanyan Nathan Cook Lee Schmitz
Voice Violin Cello Piano
(1900-1950) I. Oh Captain! My Captain! II. Beat! Beat! Drums! III. Dirge for Two Veterans
Lincoln, Whitman, and Iowans of the Civil War
Jeffrey Brich Robin Guy
Voice Piano
Three Whitman Pieces for Cello and Piano op. 4 (193?)
Paul Creston (1906-1979)
I. Assurances II. Reconciliation III. Songs of Joy Nathan Cook Lee Schmitz
Cello Piano
Video: Letters from the home front and the war front
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While our first concert was grounded in the realm of fantasy and the second concert in religious history, our final concert focuses on poetry that exists somewhere in between. Working with the Grout Museum, this concert combines poetry that reflects upon life, death, and war with actual Civil War pictures and letter of Cedar Valley residents. My hope is to present something similar to a series of Ken Burns “Civil War” vignettes, but narrowly focused on specific men and women of the Cedar Valley and how they saw the war both at home and abroad. The music that makes up tonight’s program are mainly by 20th Century American composers who came to terms with the wars of their era through music. Some composers, such as Roy Harris or Ned Rorem, were born and raised in the United States while Kurt Weill or Igor Stravinsky were born overseas and later immigrated to our shores. Regardless, each work on tonight’s program paints a unique portrait of war. I use the broader term “war” and not “Civil War” because, while much of the text of the program is by the Civil War poet Walt Whitman, or about Abraham Lincoln, each composer was drawing from the universality of the text to respond to the other wars that followed and shaped their own lives. We begin tonight’s program with Igor Stravinsky’s A Soldier’s Tale, a work written in the midst of the First World War. This work does have a text, though not of Whitman or Lincoln. The author is the Swiss C.F.Ramuz and the title character, the soldier, is a universal soldier who could be from any war. The text is a variation of Goethe’s Faust but with a much darker ending. While Faust is redeemed at the end, the soldier’s soul (symbolized by the violin) of Stravinsky’s work is damned to Hell for eternity (symbolized by the dark tango movement at the end of the work). The idea that the Devil wins might seem shocking, but in the context of the trench warfare of World War I Europe there were many
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